He led the U.S. Senate, brokered a peace deal in Northern Ireland, investigated steroid use in baseball and gave his best shot at bringing peace to the Middle East. Former Maine U.S. Sen. George Mitchell spoke with WMTW News about the ongoing threat from ISIS and Iran's nuclear program.

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"Why does it always have to be the United States fighting other people's battles," Mitchell said.

After seizing the historic city of Palmyra, ISIS now controls 50 percent of Syria.

Mitchell told WMTW News 8's Erin Ovalle on Thursday that the fight in Syria should not be the sole responsibility of the U.S.

"If we put American troops on the ground in Syria, the two opposing forces, we are against both of them, the ISIS and Assad regime. What it will do it will cause the American troops to become the target of both of those sides," Mitchell said.

After fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mitchell believes the answer is not to send our troops to Syria.

"We should be involved. We are providing assistance, and it may be that we want to step up special forces assistance, spotters on the ground, but large scale numbers of American combat troops into Syria would make our troops the target," Mitchell said.

Mitchell has also been vocal about the best way to reach a deal in the high-stakes negotiations involved Iran's nuclear program.

"There are two ways, negotiation or through war, and it seems to me that it's common sense you try to negotiate that outcome before you turn to war," Mitchell said.

While Iran wants quick sanction relief, Mitchell said Iran won't see it until the country follows through on its promises.

"Of course we don't trust them. We shouldn't trust them. The question is, can we come up with a process that verifies to our satisfaction and the other countries involved in the negotiation? Can we all be satisfied that Iran will do what it commits to do in the agreement? That's the crucial issue remains unresolved," said Mitchell.

Mitchel also spoke about his legacy. He said the thing he misses most about being a U.S. Senator is traveling across Maine to meet new people and hear their stories.

He said he still travels often, but will always call Maine his home.

Mitchell hopes his scholarship program will be his lasting legacy.

"Overall, the most significant thing I've done is established a scholarship fund here in Maine for needy students in Maine. We have to give everyone of these kids the chance to go as high and as far as their talents and willingness to work will take them, and in the end to me, that's the most important thing I've ever done," said Mitchell.

The scholarship program has helped more than 2,500 students and has provided more than $12 million in financial assistance.

The former senator has written a new book titled "The Negotiator" about his career and politics and the unrest in the Middle East.

It is his fifth book and focuses on his negotiating experience in conflict resolution, politics and business.

He said he was inspired to write the book because of his parents.

"I wrote the book for two reasons, one to pay tribute to my parents, who are really responsible for everything I've done and what I am, but also to call attention to a problem in our country and that's a decline in opportunity for people from difficult backgrounds," Mitchell said.